Starbucks and Foursquare Take Over the World: A Case Study
I didn’t really want a Frappuccino; I didn’t even want coffee. All I really wanted to do was go home, get a shower, and curl up with a nice bottle of wine and watch the 9th Doctor take on the baddies on DVD. (Yes, I’m a nerd.) So why was I queuing in a Starbucks, playing with my iPod Touch, about to spend four dollars I didn’t have on a drink I didn’t really want instead of racing home to end a rather rough day?
Foursquare.
You see, eight hours ago on an otherwise unremarkable morning, I’d stopped into my local Starbucks for a cup of tea, having run out at home. I don’t usually stop at Starbucks when I’m in a hurry for a cup of something hot on the go - Dunkin Donuts is cheaper and WaWa is better - but on this particular morning, Dunkin Donuts was offering a free iced coffee, resulting in queues around the block and WaWa was well out of my way. Neither of these things would usually be a deterrent except for one key factor leading up to a perfect storm of coincidence, social media, and marketing savvy: I was running late.
So, I pulled into the Starbucks I’ve passed a million times but only occasionally visited and queued up.
The line was moving fairly quickly, but I’m practically ADHD and immediately felt my mind slowing down to something less than 5000 RMP. My hand, which seems to suffer from Alien Hand Syndrome in these situations, had whipped out my iPod Touch and logged onto the Starbucks network before I even realized what was happening to me.
It was while on Twitter that I noticed a friend of mine had signed into Foursquare only a few minutes prior at this same Starbucks. A quick glance around the room, however, revealed that she was no where to be found, but on the off chance that she was in the bathroom or had moved to another store in the strip mall, I logged in.
“Special HERE!” Foursquare said.
Curious, I clicked.
“As mayor of this store, enjoy $1 off a NEW however-you-want-it Frappuccino blended beverage. Any size, any flavor. Offer valid until 6/28.”
I shrugged, ordered my tea, and carried on with my day.
My curiosity, however, was peaked. When I arrived at my destination, I logged into the Wi-Fi network and jumped onto Foursquare’s website, curious to see how close I was to being the mayor of Foursquare, especially since I was one mayorship away from the “Super Mayor” badge that I’ve been trying to win for so long.
Current Mayor: Priscilla J.
Number of Visits: 5
My visits: 5
I was one visit away from becoming the mayor of Starbucks and getting that “Super Mayor” badge!
All day, all I could think about was logging in on the way home to get the badge. “It seems so stupid,” I kept telling myself, trying to talk myself out of spending more money, “but I could just get, like, a scone or something. They have those little mini donuts that are seventy-five cents or something. I could just get one of those.” (Honestly, I could have just walked in, logged in, and walked out, but that’s so not in the spirit of the game.)
Convinced that I’d merely spend the smallest amount possible on the cheapest item on the menu, I pulled into the parking lot at 5:30pm that evening. There was only one person ahead of me in line, so I logged in as quickly as I could.
“You just ousted @cillajenkins as the mayor of Starbucks Coffee on @foursquare! http://4sq.com/aPC4sa” said the first message, immediately followed by the more important, “Congratulations! You just unlocked the “Super Mayor” badge on @foursquare! http://4sq.com/cejdqs”
And then the Special popped up again.
“As mayor of this store, enjoy $1 off a NEW however-you-want-it Frappuccino blended beverage. Any size, any flavor. Offer valid until 6/28.”
“Can I help you?” said the friendly guy behind the counter who looked all of fifteen years old.
“Um…” I said, the message staring at me. “What kind of Frappuccino is good?”
“You can now get a Frappuccino however you want it!” he said, “but most people like mocha.”
“Um, okay then, I’ll take a Mocha Frappuccino and, uh, can I have my Mayor’s discount?”
He looked down at my phone.
“Awesome!” he said. “I just found out about this when I checked in for my shift!”
“I found out about it when I checked in for tea!” I replied.
Mirrored from Most Likely to Take Over the World.